For their final concert of the 2016-17 Season, CUCO are joined by guest leader Thomas Gould, who will direct the orchestra from the violin. Gould is one of the most exciting British violinists of his generation, described as an artist who “refuses to be defined by a single genre” (The Guardian). He is the Leader of Britten Sinfonia, a pioneering unconducted ensemble.

This dynamic programme, which explores the balance between old and new, opens with the world première of Thread of the Infinite by Joy Lisney (CUMS Composer in Residence 2016-17). This is followed by Tippett’s Fantasia Concertante on a Theme of Corelli, a modern chamber work for strings which draws upon Baroque Concerto Grosso structures. The wind and brass will then rejoin the orchestra to perform Beethoven’s ‘Pastoral’ Symphony, a vivid and groundbreaking celebration of the great outdoors.